Generally, automotive vehicles have included a bumper assembly to minimize damage to the vehicle during collisions. These bumper assemblies function as impact beams as well as provide some energy absorbing features to enhance the crashworthiness of the vehicle. While bumper assemblies have historically been an exposed feature of the vehicle, current design trends have integrated the bumper assembly with the vehicle body. For example, the bumper assembly may be located behind the front fascia of the vehicle. Current design trends have also been directed to improvements in aerodynamics to substantially reduce the wind resistance of the vehicle.
While these design trends have made the vehicle more visually appealing, they have adversely affected other aspects of the vehicle. As an example, the integrated fascia/bumper assembly may impede the air flow into the engine compartment of the vehicle, thus decreasing the cooling capacity of a radiator associated therewith. In addition, the packaging requirements of the bumper assembly have made it difficult to satisfy certain crashworthiness criteria. Moreover, the location of the bumper assembly behind a body panel can result in increased damage to the vehicle during certain impact situations.